In the midst of experiencing a lot of brokenness in this
country, I’ve been encouraged by this prayer from the Archbishop Oscar Romero,
along with the following scriptures. There
is HOPE in the Lord.
Prophets of a Future Not Our Own
It helps, now and then, to step back and take a long view.
The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts,
it is even beyond our vision.
We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction
of the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work.
Nothing we do is complete, which is a way of saying
that the kingdom always lies beyond us.
No statement says all that could be said.
No prayer fully expresses our faith.
No confession brings perfection.
No pastoral visit brings wholeness.
No program accomplishes the church’s mission.
No set of goals and objectives includes everything.
This is what we are about.
We plant the seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted,
knowing that they hold future promise.
We lay foundations that will need further development.
We provide yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities.
We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation
in realizing that. This enables us to do something,
and to do it very well. It may be incomplete,
but it is a beginning, a step along the way,
an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results, but that is the difference
between the master builder and the worker.
We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future not our own. AMEN.
– Archbishop Oscar Romero
“‘Be STILL, and know that I AM GOD; I will be
exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth’� (Psalm 46:10).
“I
have set my eyes upon the Lord. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be
shaken� (Psalm 16:8).
“But now, Lord, what do I look for? MY HOPE IS
IN YOU� (Psalm 39:7).
“And
we rejoice in the HOPE of the glory of God. Not only so, but we rejoice in our
sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance,
character; and character, HOPE. And HOPE DOES NOT DISAPPOINT US, because God
has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given
us� (Romans 5:2-5).
Praise
the Lord. Bwana asifiwe!
